Hokies claim four titles at Keystone Classic

PHILADELPHIA, PA – Four Virginia Tech wrestlers collected 2023 Keystone Classic titles to lead the contingent in the city of brotherly love on Sunday. Caleb Henson, Bryce Andonian, Andy Smith, and Hunter Cataka were crowned champions while fourteen of Tech’s sixteen competitors found the podium in the Palestra to complete a busy Hokie wrestling weekend.
 
Four Hokies Claim Titles
It was an impressive day for the four Hokie champions on Sunday: collecting 15 bonus point victories and surrendering only two takedowns between all four of them. At 149-pounds it was 2023 All-American Caleb Henson putting on a takedown clinic to outscore the field 72-13 without surrendering a single offensive point. Henson went major decision, tech fall, tech fall, and tech fall to pick up a dominant title a year after placing third at the same tournament.

Y’all listening? The Hitman has been saying he’s coming for that 🏆

CALEB HENSON WITH THE 19-3 TECH FALL TO CLAIM THE TITLE!

Oh btw, he put up 72 total points today in FOUR matches. pic.twitter.com/pq4oXVanrA

— Virginia Tech Wrestling (@HokiesWrestling) November 19, 2023

 
There were more highlights to add to the reel at 157-pounds as No. 5 Bryce Andonian racked up 62 offensive points in four matches, but only because his fourth match ended in a 0:37 pin over the No. 21 ranked wrestler in the country in the finals. The Hokie senior picked up three tech falls and a pin to put a stamp on a great weekend in the north east.

Bryce Andonian was in a hurry! He goes BIG in the finals and wins Keystone Classic with ease 😤 pic.twitter.com/yaZ0CP2HIy

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) November 20, 2023

 
No. 16 Andy Smith bounced back from his Friday performance with a Keystone Classic title at 197-pounds. Smith showed urgency throughout the day to get to and finish attacks which propelled him to a 4-0 Sunday. Smith collected all bonus point victories and a key win over another ranked wrestler in the finals.
 
Hunter Catka improved his placement from last year’s Keystone Classic with a first-place finish all while racking up 56 points in four bouts en route to his heavyweight title. Catka collected three tech falls, putting up 16 or more in each of those victories. His closest bout was against teammate Jimmy Mullen in a tactical finals battle.
 
Freshmen Impress
Five true freshmen stepped on the mats for Tech on Sunday. All five found the podium, led by Jimmy Mullen at 285-pounds who placed. The big guy from Kearny, New Jersey showed his slick prowess with two slick takedowns in his first bout to eventually pick up a fall at 2:08 into the bout against Dominic Petracci (Drexel). He then put on display the horsepower he has on the football field with a powerful double to back against Jacob Sartorio (App State) to pick the fall at 4:20 mark in the semifinals.
 
Following up his big Friday night at Rutgers, it was Rafael Hipolito, Jr. going 3-1 to take third on the day at 165-pounds. Hipolito opened his tournament with a 17-2 tech fall over fellow ACC competitor Gaetano Console of Duke then followed up with a 10-5 victory over App State’s Will Miller. Hipolito would then drop a close 7-9 decision to Tyler Lillard of Indiana in the semifinals. Hipolito would then pick up a victory over teammate Ty Finn to secure a third-place finish in his first Keystone Classic.

Virginia Tech true freshman Rafael Hipolito goes big in his first match at the Keystone Classic! pic.twitter.com/2BkgRmpLPv

— FloWrestling (@FloWrestling) November 19, 2023

 
Adding to the freshmen placers were Logan Frazier (sixth, 133-pounds), Mac Church (fifth, 141-pounds), and Sonny Sasso (fifth, 197-pounds). Frazier dropped a first round bout but battled back to win three straight before losing his two placement bouts. Church went 5-2 on the day, dropping his second bout to 2023 All-American CJ Composto but wrestling back to place fifth in his first collegiate tournament. Sasso made his season debut to a tune of 4-2 with three of his wins coming via bonus points.
 
Rounding Out the Podium
No. 21 Sam Fisher finished with silver with a 3-1 Sunday, just missing out on a first-place finish on a missed attack in the finals. At 157-pounds, Kylan Montgomery finished fourth but not without an upset victory in the consolation semifinals against No. 28 Lucas Revano (UPenn) to put together a solid weekend. Also finishing fourth – but at 165-pounds – was No. 19 Connor Brady. Brady lost a tight quarterfinal bout to Indiana’s Tyler Lillard but would win three in a row on the backside to finish fourth. One of the other placers at 165-pounds for the Hokies was Ty Finn who finished sixth after battling through six matches on the day. No. 15 Eddie Ventresca picked up two wins on the day before medically defaulting out of the tournament after his semifinal bout to finish sixth after a busy weekend for the 2023 All-American.
 
 Tech takes a break with action resuming at the Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational from December 1-2. Follow Hokies Wrestling on X, Instagram, and Facebook for all the latest Tech wrestling news and updates!

Weight-by-Weight Results

125-pounds

No. 15 Eddie Ventresca – 6^th Place

• Round of 16 – maj dec Eric Howe (Franklin & Marshall), 14-2
• Quarterfinals – tech fall Brady Pruett (UPenn), 19-4
• Semifinals – loss Max Gallagher (UPenn), 5-8 SV
• Consolation Semifinals – medical forfeit Desmond Pleasant (Drexel)
• Fifth Place – medical forfeit Logan Agin (Duke)

133-pounds
Logan Frazier – 6^th Place

• Round of 16 – loss, Alex Almeyda (UPenn), 0-8
• Consolations – dec Jameson Garcia (Harvard), 7-1
• Consolations – fall John Hildebrandt (Drexel), 3:39
• Consolation Quarterfinals – fall Cayden Rooks (Indiana), 4:30
• Consolation Semifinals – loss Mason Leiphart (Franklin & Marshall), 3:17
• Fifth Place Bout – loss Coleman Nogle (Harvard), 4:04 

141-pounds
Mac Church – 5^th Place

• Round of 16 – maj dec Bryce Kresho (Franklin & Marshall), 13-5
• Quarterfinals – loss No. 12 CJ Composto (UPenn), 2-9
• Consolations – dec Kaden Keiser (App State), 9-6
• Consolation Quarterfinals – dec James Emmer (Utah Valley), 8-3
• Consolation Semifinals – loss Pat Phillips (Franklin & Marshall), 2-4
• Fifth Place Bout – dec Isaac Byers (App State), 4-1 SV

149-pounds
No. 4 Caleb Henson – 1^st Place

• Round of 16 – maj dec Isaiah Delgado (Utah Valley), 11-0
• Quarterfinals – tech fall Sean Seefeldt (UPenn), 22-6
• Semifinals – tech fall Kelly Dunnigan (UPenn), 20-4
• Finals – tech fall Jackson Polo (UPenn), 19-3

157-pounds
No. 5 Bryce Andonian – 1^st Place

• Round of 16 – tech fall Connor Trowbridge (Drexel), 21-5
• Quarterfinals – tech fall Kyler Lake (Utah Valley), 19-3
• Semifinals – tech fall Jude Swisher (UPenn), 21-6
• Finals – fall No. 21 Tommy Askey (App State), 0:37

Kylan Montgomery – 4^th Place

• Round of 16 – loss, No. 21 Tommy Askey (App State), 3-11
• Consolations – maj dec Dom D’Agostino (Drexel), 11-1
• Consolations – dec Joseph Cangro (Harvard), 7-2
• Consolation Quarterfinal – dec Jimmy Harrington (Harvard), 7-2
• Consolation Semifinal – dec No. 28 Lucas Revano (UPenn), 7-4
• Third Place Bout – loss Jude Swisher (UPenn), 3-13 

165-pounds
Rafael Hipolito, Jr. – 3^rd Place

• Round of 16 – tech fall Gaetano Console (Duke), 17-2
• Quarterfinals – dec Will Miller (App State), 10-5
• Semifinals – loss Tyler Lillard (Indiana), 7-9
• Consolation Semifinals – dec Ty Finn (Virginia Tech), 4-2
• Third Place Bout – No Contest over Connor Brady (Virginia Tech) per NCAA match limit rules

No. 19 Connor Brady – 4^th Place

• Round of 32 – dec Aidan Wallace (Duke), 10-3
• Round of 16 – tech fall Nicholas Franzen (Sacred Heart), 21-5
• Quarterfinals – loss Tyler Lillard (Indiana), 2-4
• Consolations – dec Kaya Sement (UPenn), 5-1
• Consolation Quarterfinal – dec Will Miller (App State), 11-4
• Consolation Semifinal – Cody Walsh (Drexel), 4-1
• Third Place Bout – No Contest to Rafael Hipolito (Virginia Tech) per NCAA match limit rules

Ty Finn – 6^th Place

• Round of 32 – tech fall Oren Bost (App State), 17-2
• Round of 16 – tech fall Cameron Connor (UPenn), 15-0
• Quarterfinals – loss No. 12 Derek Giltcher (Indiana), 0-2
• Consolations – dec Cole Spencer (UPenn), 9-6 SV
• Consolation Quarterfinal – dec Gaetano Console (Duke), 8-4
• Consolation Semifinal – loss Rafael Hipolito, Jr. (Virginia Tech), 2-4
• Fifth Place Bout – No Contest to C. Walsh per NCAA match limit rules

Clayton Ulrey

• Round of 16 – maj dec Jaxon Garoutte (Utah Valley), 11-2
• Quarterfinals – loss Cody Walsh (Drexel), 0-11
• Consolations – loss Gaetano Console (Duke), 2:38 

174-pounds
Kolton Clark

• Round of 16 – loss Nick Incontrera (UPenn), 8-18
• Consolation – Merrell Morley (Utah Valley), 14-9
• Consolation – loss Noah Fox (Franklin & Marshall), 3-4

184-pounds
No. 21 Sam Fisher – 2^nd Place

• Round of 16 – maj dec Conor Becker (Duke), 11-2
• Quarterfinals – dec Mahonri Rushton (Utah Valley), 4-1 SV
• Semifinals – dec Roman Rogotzke (Indiana), 9-5
• Finals – loss No. 32 James Conway (Franklin & Marshall), 5-8 SV

197-pounds
No. 16 Andy Smith – 1^st Place

• Round of 16 – tech fall Daniel Bitner (Harvard), 19-2
• Quarterfinals – tech fall Kwansi Bonsu (Duke), 19-3
• Semifinals – fall No. 22 Cole Urbas (UPenn), 2:21
• Finals – maj dec John Crawford (Franklin & Marshall), 17-6

Sonny Sasso – 5^th Place

• Round of 16 – fall Chris Delena (Sacred Heart), 4:49
• Quarterfinals – loss No. 17 Evan Bockman (Utah Valley), 7-9
• Consolations – tech fall Daniel Bitner (Harvard), 19-4
• Consolation Quarterfinal – fall Gabe Sollars (Indiana), 1:50
• Consolation Semifinal – loss No. 22 Cole Urbas (UPenn), 4-11
• Fifth Place Bout – Medical Forfeit over Evan Bockman (Utah Valley)

285-pounds
No. 18 Hunter Catka – 1^st

• Round of 16 – tech fall Levi Andrews (App State), 16-1
• Quarterfinals – tech fall Harrison Shapiro (Franklin & Marshall), 18-0
• Semifinals – tech fall John Stout (UPenn), 18-0
• Finals – dec Jimmy Mullen (Virginia Tech), 4-1

Jimmy Mullen – 2^nd

• Quarterfinals – fall Dominic Petracci (Drexel), 2:09
• Semifinals – fall Jacob Sartorio (App State), 4:20
• Finals – loss Hunter Catka (Virginia Tech), 1-4